STARKVILLE, Miss. -
Mississippi State junior Alison Owen was named Southeastern Conference Softball
Co-Pitcher of the Week, the league announced Monday. The right-hander's first
career SEC honor makes her the ninth pitcher in school history and the second Bulldog
in the last seven seasons to pick up the nod.

"I wouldn't have been able to
accomplish this if it wasn't for the animal defense behind me and our team's pitch-by-pitch
mentality," Owen excitedly told a room full of reporters Monday afternoon. "I
also want to personally thank my two catchers this weekend, Sam Lenahan and
Logan Foulks. They did a phenomenal job behind the plate."

Owen was
named to the Blues City Classic All-Tournament Team Sunday night after going 2-0
on the weekend. The righty pitched two complete-game shutouts at the Southaven,
Miss., tournament, striking out 31 batters and issuing her first walk of the
season in 40.1 innings pitched. Opponents squeezed out three hits and failed to
score a run against the Bulldogs' ace, hitting a minuscule .067.

The right-hander began her weekend
in style, breaking the single-game school record with 15 strikeouts in a complete-game,
two-hit blanking of Wichita State. The performance came six days after Owen
tied the previous mark of 14, which was set twice back in 1998.

One day later, Owen returned to the
circle and broke her own school record with a 16-strikeout performance against SIU-Edwardsville.
The Newnan, Ga., native fanned the entire Cougars' lineup consecutively to
start the game, becoming the first pitcher in school history to record nine-straight
strikeouts. The career-high 16 K's marked the most by a SEC pitcher in a
seven-inning game this season.

On the season, the junior is 5-1 and
leads the SEC in
opponent batting average (.076), strikeouts per seven innings (11.4) and fewest
walks allowed (1). Additionally, she is third in the league in ERA (0.52) and
ranks fourth in strikeouts (65). Her last three starts have all been
complete-game shutouts, including two one-hitters as well as
a two-hitter.

"We knew
when she said yes to Mississippi State, it was a big yes for our program," Head
Coach Vann Stuedeman said. "With the help of our whole staff, she can make a
huge impact. She is good now, but she can be even better."

After not having an SEC Pitcher of
the Week from April 2006 to the end of the 2011 season, the Bulldogs have had
two hurlers earn the weekly accolade under Stuedeman since the dugout general
arrived in Starkville prior to the 2012 season. Owen's award marks the 21st
time in Stuedeman's career that the skipper has coached an SEC Pitcher of the
Week.

Stuedeman's
pitchers have been one of the main reasons for MSU's early success this year
(9-4). The staff leads the SEC in strikeouts (143) and opponent batting average
(.159), while ranking second in fewest hits allowed (51). The Bulldogs are on
pace for 605 strikeouts in the regular season, which would shatter the school
record set last season of 358. Opponents are hitting just .159 off Starkville's
Team, which would also destroy the MSU all-time mark of .216. State's record of
6.7 strikeouts per seven innings set by Stuedeman's staff last season would be
obliterated by this year's 11.3 mark, while the 1.82 staff ERA is currently the
lowest in 15 years.

Missouri's
Chelsea Thomas joined Owen as SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week after striking out 19
batters in a 4-3 extra-inning win against No. 5 Florida.

Bulldog
fans in the Sunshine State can watch their reigning SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week March
1-3, as Stuedeman's squad travels to Orlando, Fla., to take part in the Citrus Classic.
The Bulldogs will play Hofstra, Maryland, LIU-Brooklyn, Fordham and Syracuse in
a 48-hour period at the internationally-known ESPN Wide World of Sports
Complex. Saturday's game vs. LIU-Brooklyn will air on ESPN3.

For live
in-game updates of MSU's games in the Magic Kingdom, follow the program on
Twitter at @MStateSB. For pictures from the Classic, like the team on Facebook
at Facebook.com/MStateSB and visit the team's Instagram account at MStateSB.
For pregame and postgame video, check out MSU's official YouTube channel at YouTube.com/HailState.